Our Story

In some ways, Heartland is a church without an agenda. While that might sound dangerous, it speaks to our desire to follow God’s leading. For years, it was the hope of people within the Christian Reformed denomination that a church would start in the Tracy area as part of the efforts of other churches in the area to reach out. With all their studying and planning, no leaders came forward to start a church. In the mean time, God was getting Pastor Mark’s attention (read his bio). Mark moved out of the Real Estate industry and took a job working at a retirement facility in Tracy. As Mark was following God’s leading into ministry, those wanting to see a church start were waiting on God. Eventually, God brought the two together and Mark agreed to plant a church if this was God's plan.

Heartland started as a small group in 1998. Over time, we have seen God bring people slowly into the church and watched people grow together in community. From day one, our commitment has been to follow God wherever He takes us. Through this journey, our intent has been to provide a safe place for people to come and connect with God, with other people and with their purpose in life. If you read our mission statement, you see that our hope is that we journey together to a deeper faith and a closer relationship with Jesus Christ. But Scripture reminds us that faith without action is dead. So we are dedicated to serve our local community by extending God’s grace to others and living out our purpose with passion and commitment.

Our journey has only just begun. Every week we discover more of who God is and what He is up to. We invite every person to journey with us – to experience the joy and peace that comes from loving God with all our heart, caring for others more than ourselves, and serving the world with passion and purpose.